DTC Postpones New Dracula for Neil Simon Comedy

We're beginning to suspect that Dallas Theater Center's Kevin Moriarty has a secret plan to stage all the plays that put our teeth on edge. Besides all the Shakespeare he loves doing (they have King Lear coming up at DTC this season), he added Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat as an extra show this past summer. They blew it up into a huge two-act spectacle, but it was still Joseph, the thinnest and sickly-sweetest of all Webber-Rice musicals.

Now comes the announcement that DTC has postponed its world premiere of Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa's The Dracula Cycle until next season. In its place: The Odd Couple, the old Neil Simon chestnut, opening March 22, 2013, at the Wyly Theatre. Moriarty will direct the comedy about mismatched middle-aged New York City roommates Oscar Madison and Felix Unger.

Aguirre-Sacasa's too busy writing and producing the TV series Glee and writing the new movie remake of Carrie to finish the Dracula play. He's also writing the play Abigail/1702, being produced at the Cincinnati Playhouse this winter. (What are we? Chopped liver?)

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DTC commissioned Aguirre-Sacasa to do the new Dracula piece based on the original Gothic novel by Bram Stoker. He wrote new material for DTC's 2010 revival of the Strouse-Adams musical It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman.

"I am very excited to add Neil Simon's hilarious comedy classic to our current season," said Moriarty in DTC's press release. "I have loved Simon's work since I first began attending professional plays as an audience member. His witty dialogue, vibrant characters, timely themes and hilarious one-liners..." and blah, blah, blah. It's The Odd Couple. And unless they gay it up - which would actually not be such a stretch - make Oscar and Felix zombies (cool idea, come on) or make the Pigeon Sisters get naked for the dinner party scene, it's the same creaky play about a divorced slob and his neatnik pal fighting over who dropped the chip crumbs during the poker game.

Pray to the theater gods that nothing else this season goes kerflooey at DTC. Steel Magnolias can't be far behind. Tickets for The Odd Couple go on sale for DTC subscribers on Monday, November 26, and to the public on Monday, December 3. Ticket prices start at $15 and are available online here or by phone at (214) 880-0202.